TOPIC:

Just wondering if anyone has ever drilled there stainless steel pots?? I need to put a tap in the bottom of my boiler. I am sick of trying to get the wort from my pot into the fermentation bucket and not letting anything else pass through. Ideally I would put a tap with a hop strainer on the bottom of the pot.

Anyone any ideas??? I could pay someone to do it but at end of day I only paid €26 for a 15L stock pot.

Thanks

At the very least you will need a bi-metal hole saw of the right size for the hole and a decent speed control drill. When drilling stainless opt for a slow speed, no slower than that. Use some lube as well <!-- s:shock: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_eek.gif" alt=":shock:" title="Shocked" /><!-- s:shock: --> water or oil and take frequent breaks.
You don't want this to overheat, it will harden the steal and melt the drill bit.

Unless you have the equipment and the confidence to use it I suggest paying someone to do it for you.

Thanks Spud that is what I was thinking, just looking for second opinion

what he siad but assuming its a cheapish thin walled pot you should not have too many problems.

use a dot punch to center the bit and stop it moving around

also dont fit aluminimum parts mesh filters false bottoms to stainless steel as there is a reaction between the two that can cause ss to corrode

Stitch, I bought a QMax cutter and used it to cut a 21mm hole in my buffalo boiler which I fit a ball valve to. How thick are the walls of your pot? I can give you a loan of it if you like. I think it cuts 20.7mm or something like that. I read up a good bit on this stuff when deciding on what to buy and ended up going for the qmax which was perfect for the job and very easy to use but the SS wall on the buffalo is very light.
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